Thread placer for cutting mechanism



Oct. '14, 1941. o. v. PAYNE THREAD PLACER FOR CUTTING MECHANISM Qriginal Filed April 15, 1940 INVENTOR OscAR V. FAv NE ATTORNEY Patented Oct. 14, 1941 THREAD PLACER. FOB. CUTTIN MECHANISM Oscar V. Payne, Leicester, Mass, assignor to Crompton & Knowles Loom Works, Worcester, Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts Original application April'15, 1940, Serial No. 329,715. Divided and thisapplication March .25, 1941, Serial No. 385,117

6 Claims.

This is a division of my co-pending application Serial'No. 329,715 filed April 15, 1940 for a Pneumatic thread control system for looms.

This invention relates to improvements in systems for controlling the weft ends of outgoing and incoming bobbins at the time of transfer in a weft replenishing loom, and it is the general object of the invention to effect this control by means of a single pneumatic unit such as a fan for disposing of the threads of both of the bobbins.

In bobbin changing looms it is necessary to maintain tension of the weft ends extending from the reserve bobbins and also dispose of the weft ends when their associated bobbins are transferred one at a time. Furthermore, it is also desirable to remove the weft end of the outgoing bobbin to prevent it from being dragged into the warp shed. It is an important object of my present invention to provide means for attracting the threads of the reserve bobbins into a thread holder by means of sub-atmospheric pressures, together with other means for removing the thread of the outgoing bobbin by means of super-atmospheric pressures, both of the means being connected to a pump or fan which derives its air supply through the thread holder and projects the air against the weft cf the outgoing bobbin.

In carrying my invention into practical effect it is desirable to provide cutting mechanism for the thread of the outgoing bobbin near the shuttle eye, such as that shown in my prior Patent No. 1,881,920, and it is also desirable to provide a temple cutter which cuts the thread at the selvage. In order to hold the thread for cutting by the temple cutter subsequent to transfer it is a further object of my invention to provide means to catch the thread and hold it in cutting position as the thread is blown away from the path of theshuttle. a

With these and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, my invention resides in the combination and arrange ment of parts hereinafter described and set forth. v

In the accompanying drawing, wherein a convenient embodiment of my invention is set forth;

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a portion of a weft replenishing loom showing my invention applied thereto,

Fig. 2 is an end elevation taken in the direction of arrow 2, Fig. 1 on a reduced scale,

Fig. 3 is a'detail horizontal section on line 3 --3 of Fig. 1, on an enlarged scale.

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic plan view of the lay, shuttle, temple and thread placer looking generally in the direction of arrow 4, Fig. 1, 7

Fig.5 is an enlarged side elevation of the temple looking in the direction of arrow 5, Fig.

' Land 7 Fig. 6 is a vertical section on line 66, Tig. 1, through the fan. 7

Referring to the drawing, I have shown a loom frame Ill and a lay L having a shuttle box H to receive the shuttle S under a magazine M provided with reservebobbins B. Weft ends W extend from the bobbins-and a transferrer-arm I2 actuated in the usual manner causes insertion of the lowest reserve bobbin into the shuttle S. The magazine shown is of the multicolor type to provide two distinctive characters of weft and maybe formed more particularlyas shown in prior Patent No. 2,128,974. The lay has the usual reed I5 along which the shuttle travels during flight and the customary crank shaft 16 and connectors I! are employed to reciprocate the lay and reed towardand from the fell Fof the cloth, in Fig. 4, which shows the cloth C extending over the breast beam I8 of the loom in the usual manner. I

' The shuttleis provided with a cutting plate 20 across which the weft thread 2! I extends as it leads from the shuttle eye'E to the adjacent'sel vage 22 0f the cloth. Thisplate cooperates with a cutter blade 23 normally in forward position but projected rearwardlyagainst the plate 20- at the time of transfer to sever the thread at a point close to the shuttle eye. The shuttle box ll is formed in part bya rear wall 25 fastened to the lay and in part by a binder 26 between which and the front wall of the shuttle the weft 2| extends. The, temple 2'! is mounted in the usual manner on the'breast beam and'has a shank 28 slidable forwardly in a'guide 29 secured to the breast beam; A cutter blade 3| is pivoted to the temple as at 32 and has a depending'fo'ot 33 for engagement with thelay L when the latter is near its foremost, or front center position. The cutter has-a' rear hookedend 34 which cooperates with ple cutters are well known and of themselves form no part of my present invention. Any approved form of temple cutter may be used and that shown in Fig. 5 is for illustrative purposes only.

The matter thus far described is of usual con struction and forms no part of my present invention other than to cooperate with parts to be described hereinafter.

In carrying my invention into effect I provide.

a pneumatic system for tensioning the weft ends W and removing the thread 2| from the path of the shuttle after it is cut at theplate 2U. The weft ends W enter an intake mouth 40 of a reversely curved tube 4| shown in Fig. 1 and are led to a thread chamber 42 communicating with the interior of tube 4|. By means of spring clasps 43 and pins 44 the chamber 42 is held to a bell 45 from which extends a hollow preferably flexible tube 46. A thread collector 41 shown more particularly in Fig. 3' is, interposed between the chamber 42 and the bell 45' and has numerous perforations 48 which allow air to pass downwardly to the bell. This baffle 41, however, prevents threads from passing into the bell and causes them to accumulate in a mass T to become entangled with and serve as anchorages for the weft ends W.

The tube 46 leads to a fan designatedgenerally at EB-and comprising a casing 5| having an inlet port 52 over which the tube 46 is fitted; The opposite side of the casing 5| is provided with a bearing 53 through which extends a shaft 54 on which is mounted a fan 55 having a series of radial vanes 56 which may be generally of the form shown in Fig. 6. A fixed bearing 51 may be provided to afford further support for shaft 54. The casing has secured therein a pair of plates 60 and 6| which lie close to the rotating vanes 56 to prevent appreciable escape of air from the pockets 62 defined by adjacent vanes and the plates 60 and 6|. The upper part of the casing is provided with anoutlet port 65 which communicates with the pockets 62'.

Secured to the outlet 65-is a tube H! which extends toward the center of the 100m and is bent as indicated in Fig. 1 so that the lower end thereof has an outlet mouth H The mouth H is located behind the lay above the shuttle race 12 as suggested in Figs. 1 and: 4, and faces forwardly. A strap 13 on the loom frame holds the tube H1 in fixed position.

In order to hold the thread holder in fixed position I provide a stand secured as at '16 to. the chamber 42. This stand may be supported from the floor on which the 100m rests and is so located as to place the intake mouth 40 in the position shown in Fig. 2 with respect to the magazine and beyond the end of the lay. The fan is supported by a pair of upright pipes 11 which may also be supported by the floor in such position as tolocate the fan behind the thread holder, as suggested in Fig. 2.

In the operation of the mechanism thus far described the shaft 54' is. caused to rotate continuously during loom operation by meansof a connection with the crank shaft Hi. This shaft completes a revolution for each flight of the shuttle and carries a groove pulley 8| which receives a V-belt B2 trained around a smaller V- P pulley 83 fastened to shaft 54 The belt is flexible and can be twisted through a quarter turn, as suggested in Fig. 2. Rotation of the vanes 56 acts by centrifugal force to move the air in port 52 through the pockets 62 and out of port 65.

The fan therefore creates sub-atmospheric pressures in the intake mouth 40 to draw air into the mouth and through the tube 4|, chamber 42, bell 45 to the interior of the fan, from which point the air is projected under super-atmospheric pressures along the tube H! to issue from the outlet mouth H in a forward direction.

I have shown a convenient form of fan but do not wish to be limited to the precise structure shown in Fig. 6. It is suihcient for the purposes of my invention if the fan draws its air supply into intake mouth 4|] and projects it from outlet mouth The pump operates continuously to 'maintain constant tension on the weft ends W tending to draw them into the tube 4| and assisting in holding them entangled with the mass of weft threads T within the chamber 42. As the bobbins B descend incident to successive transfers any slack developed in their weft ends will be taken up by the pneumatic thread holder.

The constantly issuing stream of air from the outletv mouth H is directed across the shuttle race 12 and when the weft thread 2|v is severed near the shuttle eye E, the weft end 2| will be blown forwardly off the race plate 12 and out of the path of the shuttle S which will be picked to the opposite side of the. loom during rearward motion of the l'ay subsequent to the transferring operation.

The temple cutter is set slightly in front of the fell of the cloth so that it does not cut the. thread 2| until several picks after a transferring beat of the loom. During the interval between transfer and cutting at the temple it is desirable to keep the weft end 2| in position for cooperation with the jaw 34 and plate 35. In order to accomplish this result I provide a wire guide 80. secured as at 9| to the temple and having a rearwardly and upwardly projecting hook 92. Behind the hook and below it is a notch 93 to receive the thread. The rear part of the wire may be-inclined downwardly and rearwardly as at 94. A small mouth is located behind the hook and affords entry for the thread into the notch.

Reference to Fig. 4 will show the relation between the cloth selvage, the guide wire and the outlet mouth H with respect to the thread 2|. The blast of air issuing from the outlet mouth 1| directs the thread 2| forwardly up the incline 94 and through the mouth 95 into the notch 93. The stream of air maintains a tension on the thread so that it is held taut from the selvage along a path lying in the zone of action of the temple cutter to the notch 93, from which point it is moved forwardly as indicated for instance in dotted lines Fig. 4. The guide wire therefore holds the thread in position for cutting which ordinarily will occur several picks after transfer. When a thread is finally cut at the temple the draft of air moves it bodily forwardly away from the lay,

From the foregoing it will be seen that I have provided a pneumatic thread control system including a fan which creates sub-atmospheric pressures to attract the threads of the reserve bobbins and creates super-atmospheric pressures to blow the weft ends 2| forwardly off the race plate 12. It will also be seen that the guide Wire serves to position the thread 2| for cooperation with the temple cutter at a time subsequent to the transferring beat of the loom, the thread being held taut by the draft of air issuing from the outlet mouth 1|. Furthermore, the guard wire and thread cutter are movable forwardly together to maintain the proper relation between the thread and cutter should the temple be moved forwardly by the lay. Again, the wire positioning guard is nearer the selvage than it is to the point of cutting in the shuttle box, therefore, the weight of that part of the thread hanging down from the wire will hold the horizontal part of the thread in position for cutting independently of the blast of air. The general features of the pneumatic thread holder may be similar to those set forth in my co-pending application Serial No. 287,443 and the various mechanisms for efiecting transfer and the behaviour of the incoming and outgoing bobbins at the time of transfer may all be as well understood in the prior art. Structure relating to pneumatic means for handling the new weft ends by suction and for exhausting the indrawn air across a laycarried weft end is claimed in co-pending application Serial No. 329,715.

Having thus described my invention it will be seen that changes and modifications may be made therein by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and I do not wish to be limited to the details herein disclosed, but what I claim is:

1. In a pneumatic thread removing system for a loom having a temple and allay along which a shuttle travels in a given path, the loom having a thread attached to the selvage and extending along said path of the shuttle away from the cloth, the loom having also a thread cutter on the temple adjacent to the selvage having a given range of cutting operations, pneumatic means to direct a blast of air against said thread to move the same forwardly from said path of the shuttle, and a guard extending rearwardly from the temple over the lay and under the thread and between the cutter and said pneumatic means to position and thread for cutting by the cutter, the blast of air acting on the thread tending to hold that part of the thread between the selvage and the guard taut and within the range of operations of the cutter.

2. In a loom having a temple and a lay along which a shuttle moves in a given path, the loom having cloth therein from a selvage of WhlCh a thread extends along said path, means to direct a blast of air from behind the thread to move the same forwardly from said path of the shuttle, a thread cutter on the temple located between said selvage and said means and having a given range of cutting operations, and a thread positioner extending rearwardly from the temple over the lay and under the thread and located between the thread cutter and said means with respect to the length of the lay, said positioner holding the thread within said range of cutting operations of the thread cutter when the blast of air acts on that part of the thread extending from the positioner toward said means.

3. In a loom having a lay along which a shuttle moves in a given path, the loom having cloth over the lay from the selvage of which a thread extends along said path in a direction away from the cloth, a temple mounted for movement in a direction transverse of said given path of the shuttle, a thread cutter on the temple adjacent the selvage and having a given cutting range of operations, means to direct a blast of air against the thread to move the latter to a position in front of said given path of the shuttle at a point along said given path farther from the selvage than the cutter, and a thread positioning guard on the temple extending rearwardly from the temple over the lay and under the thread and located between the cutter and the means, the blast of air when directed on that part of the thread extending from the guard toward said means creating a tension on that part of the thread between the guard and the selvage tending to hold said last named part of the thread within said cutting range of the thread cutter.

4. In a loom having a temple and a lay along which a shuttle moves in a given path, the loom having cloth therein from a selvage of which a threadlextends along said path, means to direct a blast of air from behind the thread to move the same forwardly from said path of the shuttle, a thread cutter on the temple located between said selvage and said means and having a given range of cutting operations, and a thread positioner extending rearwardly from the temple over the lay and under the thread and located between the thread cutter and said means with respect to the length of the lay, said thread positioner including a rearwardly projecting hook and having a thread positioning notch in front of therear end of the thread positioner and below the hook and a thread receiving mouth under the hookand leading to the notch, the blast of air issuing from the means blowing the thread through the mouth and into the notch and the latter assisting in holding the thread within said range of cutting operations.

5. In a loom having a temple and a lay along which a shuttle moves in a given path, the loom having a thread extending from the selvage along said path away from the cloth, means to direct a blast of air from behind the thread at a given point along said path removed from the selvage to move said thread forwardly from the path of the shuttle, a thread cutter on the temple located between the selvage and said given point and having a range of cutting operations, and a thread positioner extending rearwardly from the temple over the lay and under the thread and between the thread cutter and said given point and having a notch in front of the rear end of the thread positioner and into which the thread is blown by the blast of air, the notch in the posi-- tioner and the selvage cooperating to place that part of the thread between the selvage and said notch within said range of cutting operations.

6. In a loom having a temple and a lay and a shuttle box at one end thereof from which a thread extends to the adjacent selvage along the path of the shuttle, means to sever the thread in the shuttle box, a thread cutter on the temple located adjacent to the selvage and having a range of cutting operations, means to blow a forwardly directed blast of air against the thread at a point between the thread cutter and the means to sever the thread, and a thread positioner extending rearwardly from the temple over the lay and under the thread and between the thread cutter and said given point toward which said thread is moved by the blast of air, said positioner holding the thread within said range when the thread is taut, that part of the thread extending from the selvage to said positioner being shorter than that part of the thread extending from the positioner to the means to sever the thread, the positioner supporting thelonger part of the thread the weight of which holds the shorter part taut.

OSCAR V. LAYNE. 

